Family Of Brooklyn Man Killed By NYPD Say Police Lied About Alleged Altercation

Two NYPD officers fatally shot a man that they claim grabbed one of the officer’s batons and proceeded to hit him over the head. According to the New York Post, Erickson Gomez Brito, 21, was killed after a male and female officer responded to a call of a “suspicious person,” at the Van Dyke Houses in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Brito was found on the 9th floor where residents said he would frequent to smoke cigarettes.

“A conversation ensued, and the next thing you know . . . the officers are in a scuffle with this man,” said NYPD Housing Bureau Chief James Secreto.

During the scuffle, Officer Andris Bisogno grabbed his baton, Brito allegedly snatched it and proceeded to beat him, leaving a two-inch gash. Bisogno’s partner, Officer Jennifer Garcia, was reportedly struck with the baton as well.

The fight looked like a “bloody cage match,” a source told the Post.

Both officers were taken to Jamaica Hospital, with Bisogno requiring stitches and fracturing his finger during the melee. Garcia suffered bruises to the head.

Mayor Bill de Blasio visited the cops in the hospital Saturday afternoon.

Brito's sister and his mother don't believe the police account. “Why did they have to kill him? Why! What did he do?” said 19-year-old Omahis Gomez Brito. “Why didn’t they just shoot his legs or something? Why? Why?"

The teen vowed to get justice for her slain brother, whom she said previously suffered from depression and drug addiction.

"He has a family," she explained. "He's not somebody that's been in gangs and all that stuff. They're not just gonna kill somebody and think they're going to get away with it."

A neighbor described the deceased man as being “a little bit off” but very quiet.

Cops all over the country have been subjected to attacks, some of which have been fatal. However, it appears that violence isn't always met with violence -- depending on the suspect in question.

Nine police officers were killed by civilians over a two-week span in November and only one suspect died at the hands of cops, another took his one life and the rest were taken into custody alive -- including 46-year-old Scott Michael Greene who killed two Iowa police officers at the beginning of the month.

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Former Mississippi cop Cassie Baker may spend 20 years behind bars for leaving her toddler in the backseat of a police cruiser while she had sex with her supervisor.

Little Cheyenne's body temperature rose to a scorching 107 degrees before she died on Sept. 30, 2016. When Baker returned to the vehicle four hours later, Cheyenne was unresponsive. Baker, 29, pled guilty to manslaughter in a reduced plea deal Monday. (March 18) It's unclear if she intentionally left her 3-year-old in the backseat of the car.

“I don’t know what I could ever do to you that could be worse than what you’ve already experienced,” Harrison County Circuit Judge Larry Bourgeois told her. “You will forever be entombed in a prison of your own mind.”

Cheyenne's father says he's still tormented by his daughter's death and often pictures her final moments.

“Every time I close my eyes, I picture her suffering, and then I picture her laying in this coffin,” Ryan Hyer said Monday. “I still see her smiling and laughing in my head, and I would assume that smile and laughter turned to pain and suffering in that instance.”

Baker and her supervisor Clark Ladner were fired days later. While speaking with the Associated Press, he was able to avoid charges after telling authorities he was unaware Baker's daughter was in the car. Judge Bourgeois will consider the prosecution recommendation at Baker's April 1 sentencing.

An 8-year-old Nigerian chess prodigy is helping his family out of homelessness. Tanitoluwa “ Tani” Adewumi, won the New York State Scholastic Chess Championship last week, beating out more than 70 of the state’s top young chess players, all while living in a homeless shelter.

Tani, who was recently profiled in the New York Times, and his family fled Nigeria in 2017, reportedly out of fear of being targeted by Boko Haram. The family applied for asylum, and have since been living in a New York shelter.

The third grader learned to play chess a year ago at his elementary school, P.S. 116. Tani’s coach, Russell Makofsky marveled at his ability to learn chess so quickly. "His intellect, his aptitude, his capacity to learn chess is off the charts,” Makofsky said. “From not playing to beating the best of the best in one year is unheard of, all while living in a homeless shelter.”

Tani has been getting a lot of attention for his big win. A GoFundMe page launched on March 15 with a goal of raising $50,000 to help Tani’s family “secure a home where he can continue his journey,” has raised more than $182,000. An attorney has also agreed to work on the family’s asylum case for free, CBS News reports.

The family now plans to move into an apartment, and posted an update on the GoFundMe page Tuesday (March 19) sharing their gratitude for the donations, Tani’s chess coach, and the media for publicizing the story. “Our big shout out to the whole WORLD for all your support financially, morally, spiritually and many more can't [be] mentioned. You are all awesome. God bless you all.”

According to the post, proceeds from the crowdfunding effort will be donated to a new foundation that the family will be starting in Tani's name.

A Connecticut resident has resigned from her position at the Hamden Public School District after a video posted to Facebook shows her using racial slurs and spitting on two black people while at a local Shop Rite.

According to The New Haven Register, Corinne Terrone who was a clerk in the district's central office, is seen with her two children when the confrontation erupts. Terrone uses the N-Word three times and spits at a black man and black woman. It's unclear how the clash begins.

After Terrone's first use of the slur, the man on video rushes toward Terrone as she attempts to take her phone out and record. “Put your hands on me, come on!” she says. He then slaps the phone out of her hand. That's the only physical encounter between the two caught on video.

The Facebook post, which has received more than 180,000 views, overwhelmingly supported the black man and woman. A spokesman for the school wrote on the district's website that Terrone "has been separated from employment effective immediately.”

“While it appears as though this happened after work hours on Friday evening, the Human Resource Director contacted the employee and arranged an investigatory meeting with her. Shortly after final arrangements were made for the investigatory meeting, the employee rendered her resignation effective immediately.”

Due to the fact that Terrone's children were present during the verbal assault, the district filed a report with DCF services.

Republican State Sen. Len Fasano and state Rep. Joseph Zullo released a joint statement condemning Terrone's language and behavior.

“What we saw in this video is repulsive and deeply offensive and does not represent the people of East Haven or our values. The behavior is shocking and upsetting and has no place anywhere, including in our community,” Fasano and Zullo said in the statement. “We understand Hamden Public Schools has acted quickly to seek this employee’s resignation. East Haven police are also seeking more information and urging any potential victims or witnesses involved to come forward. Hate speech and violence will not be tolerated in our community.”